India, Nov. 3 -- A 72-year-old man who had been struggling with a persistent cough and repeated chest infections was feared to have a tumour in his lung. But when doctors examined the suspicious growth, they found a human tooth lodged deep inside his airway, apparently for nearly three years.

The unusual case was detailed in a report published on October 31, 2026, in The Egyptian Journal of Bronchology, a journal published by Springer Nature.

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The man had experienced several months of coughing up phlegm and recurring lower respiratory tract infections, which had repeatedly been treated with antibiotics. He had cardiovascular disease but no ...